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Friday, October 29, 2010

In The Valley of Kashmir

Chinar tree image from frontiertreksindia.com

A poet
tells me
there are chinar trees
on the landscapes
of Kashmir
just like
the tall old maple
out my door.


This thought
tinkles
through my mind
enticingly
as if
I had never
fully
grasped
this truth
before.

I gaze
upon
my newly
significant
tree,
as if
I could
somehow
look outside
and see
those ancient temples
in another land
shining
in our shared
celestial canopy,
reflected
in its skyscape
back to me.

In the valleys
of Kashmir
a  poet walks,
eyes bedazzled
and wondering
in the glow
of the place
he calls
a Paradise
on earth.
The pictures show
a landscape
that I know:
a winding river,
a lake,
hills
soft and rounded
in the setting sun,
willow trees,
tall  poplars
one by one -
that mirrored valley
ten thousand miles
away
looking
just like
this valley
encircling me
today.

image of Kashmir Lake from trifter.com

Kashmir,
"where nature
sits
in the lap
of the gods,"
its pathways
where
a gentle poet
trods,
where rivers wind
through valleys
sweet and mild,
and a lake lies
ringed by
round low hills
exactly
like those
around
my lakeside
orchard valley
as a child.
image by Wajid Drabu at betterphoto.com
              
Two valleys
where apple trees
will bloom
again;
in this mirrored
world,
somewhere
it's always
spring -
their buds
will be
peacefully
unfurled,
and poets' hearts
will lift
again
and sing
at the
unexpected
beauty
of
this
most
amazing
dual
offering.

4 comments:

  1. Hmmmm

    Hey Kashmir willow is a favourite with Indian cricketers !

    And yes, the Avantipur temple still stands, built in the ninth century AD and its one of just a handful of Sun temples in India, the most famous being that in Konarak in the State of Orissa ..

    ReplyDelete
  2. Again, what can I say? You post pictures but paint with your words.

    A nice place to visit. Can I bring a cup of coffee next time?

    Wysteria

    ReplyDelete
  3. "where nature sits in the lap of the gods" That is so beautiful. And Wysteria is right, your words paint a wonderful picture.

    ReplyDelete
  4. It totally blows me away that on the other side of the world lies a valley so much like the one I live in, and also like the valley I was raised in as a child, full of apple orchards - like mirrored worlds - so near the temples and (to me) so exotic landscapes of the east. And that somewhere so far away someone is reading my words on a computer screen......who knew this whole cyber world can open doors to happy recluses like me:) Wish I had discovered it years ago! So thank you, gentle readers. I so appreciate your visits. Truly.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you so much for visiting. I appreciate it and will return your visit soon.